Justice News

Modesto Resident Pleads Guilty In Tax Fraud Consipracy

FRESNO, Calif. — Christine Rose Caraway, 34, of Modesto, pled guilty today to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.

According to court documents, from about December 2010 to May 2011, Caraway and her former spouse Heath Roberson obtained personal identifying information from over 40 individuals. Caraway then used this information to generate false tax returns seeking over $121,000 in tax refunds and submitted them to the IRS. Caraway and Roberson funneled the tax refunds into accounts they controlled.

This case is the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division. Assistant United States Attorney Michael G. Tierney is prosecuting the case.

Roberson pled guilty in April 2014 to one count of conspiring to defraud the United States. In July 2014, he was sentenced to serve two years, nine months in prison and to pay over $66,000 in restitution to the IRS.

Caraway is in custody and is scheduled to be sentenced by Senior United States District Judge Anthony W. Ishii on April 20, 2015. She faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.